Minimal Experience Necessary: Dylan Lee and Tucker Davidson Are Part of a Grand October Tradition

Though they lost on Sunday night, the Braves still own a three-games-to-two lead over the Astros in the World Series thanks in large part to the work done by their bullpen. Due to the season-ending injuries to starters Huascar Ynoa and Charlie Morton, the unit has had to do a whole lot of heavy lifting, throwing two-thirds of the team’s innings (29.1 out of 44). What’s more, in Games 4 and 5, not only did manager Brian Snitker have to patch together bullpen games, he began them by giving the ball to a pair of pitchers, lefty Dylan Lee and righty Tucker Davidson, who barely had any big league experience at all. Lee, in fact, had never started a big league game before, making that move without precedent in any of the previous 115 World Series. The gambit met with only limited success, as both pitchers were shaky, but the Braves nonetheless managed a split, taking Game 4 before losing Game 5.

Lee and Davidson are hardly the first such pitchers to be thrown into the World Series fire despite a dearth of experience. In fact, such October surprises are part of a rich tradition. What follows here is a non-comprehensive look back at the Braves’ pair plus eight other pitchers with minimal major league experience before the Fall Classic (which isn’t to say that they’re the youngest), and how they fared.

Ken Brett, 1967 Red Sox (1 regular season appearance)

The older brother of Hall of Famer George Brett as well as two other brothers (Bobby and John) who briefly played professionally, Ken Brett stands as both the youngest and least experienced pitcher in World Series history. The fourth pick of the 1966 draft out of El Segundo High School in California, Brett rose quickly through the minors, and was just nine days past his 19th birthday when he debuted with two innings of relief work in a loss to Cleveland on September 27, 1967. At the time, the “Impossible Dream” Red Sox were 80-70, tied for second in a four-way race. When they pulled out the pennant, manager Dick Williams included the precocious lefty on the roster without hesitation because, as he later said, “He had the guts of a burglar.”

Brett made relief appearances in Games 4 and 7; in the former, he threw a scoreless eighth inning while trailing 6-0, retiring Mike Shannon, Julian Javier (by strikeout) and Bob Gibson, the latter after walking Dal Maxvill. “Where has he been?” said Cardinals skipper Red Schoendienst afterwards. “With the kind of stuff he showed us, you wonder why he isn’t starting the Series. But don’t let me give the Red Sox any ideas.”

In the top of the ninth in Game 7, with the Red Sox trailing 7-2, two outs and the bases loaded, Brett retired Tim McCarver on a groundout, but the Red Sox lost nonetheless. Due to a tour of duty in the Army and an elbow injury, he didn’t pitch again in the majors until 1969, but in his 14-year career, he made an All-Star team for the Pirates (1974), teamed up with brother George (1980-81), and became almost as well known for his own hitting (10 homers — including ones in four straight starts in 1973 — and a career 94 wRC+) as his pitching.

Dylan Lee, 2021 Braves (4 appearances: 2 regular season, 2 postseason)

Despite his relative inexperience at the major league level, Lee is no spring chicken. A 10th-round 2016 draft pick out of Fresno State by the Marlins, he spent four seasons in their organization but wasn’t even sent to their alternate training site last year. Released this spring, he caught on with the Braves in mid-April, and spent the rest of the season pitching well (1.54 ERA, 2.621 FIP) out of the bullpen at Triple-A Gwinnett. The Braves recalled him twice late in the season, but he didn’t debut until October 1, when he threw a scoreless inning against the Mets. He gave up two runs to them in another inning the next day.

At that point, nobody expected Lee to pitch again this season, but he was added to the NLCS roster when Ynoa was scratched from starting Game 4 due to shoulder inflammation. He made his postseason debut in Game 5, pitching two innings and giving up Chris Taylor’s third home run of the game. He threw two-thirds of an inning in Game 2 of the World Series; relieving Max Fried in the sixth inning with two on and nobody out, he induced Kyle Tucker to ground out, and got Yuli Gurriel to hit a grounder as well, but Ozzie Albies‘ drop of the ball on the transfer while attempting to turn a double play led to a run. After a double steal, Lee struck out Jose Siri before giving way to Jesse Chavez.

His World Series start was messier. Lee didn’t find out until the morning of the game that he was getting the ball, something he hadn’t done since A-ball in 2017. After allowing an infield single to Jose Altuve and walking Michael Brantley, he struck out Alex Bregman, but walking Yordan Alvarez to load the bases ended his night early. It didn’t end the accounting, however, as the Carlos Correa grounder induced by reliever Kyle Wright brought Altuve home, though Wright’s strikeout of Tucker limited the damage, and the Braves overcame a 2-1 deficit with back-to-back homers by Dansby Swanson and Jorge Soler in the seventh.

Tucker Davidson, 2021 Braves (5 regular season appearances)

A 19th-round draft pick out of Midland College in 2016, Davidson was roughed up in his major league debut on September 26, 2020, surrendering seven runs (just two earned) in 1.2 innings against the Red Sox. After starting this season in Triple-A, he was recalled in mid-May, and made four starts totaling 20 innings, delivering a 3.60 ERA and 4.52 FIP; five of his eight runs allowed came in his final, 2.1-inning outing against the Red Sox. The next day, he landed on the injured list due to inflammation in his left forearm, and didn’t pitch again until a three-inning stint for Gwinnett on October 3.

Davidson was added to the World Series roster after Morton was diagnosed with a fractured right fibula, but even then, nobody could have counted on his getting the call for Game 5. He pitched a scoreless first inning, getting a double play off the bat of Correa after walking Brantley, but after being staked to a 4-0 lead via Adam Duvall’s grand slam, he allowed two runs on a walk, two hits, and a sacrifice fly in the second, and got the hook in the third, after Altuve reached on a Swanson error and Brantley walked; Jesse Chavez served up a game-tying double to Correa, with both runs (unearned) charged to Davidson. The Astros prevailed in the back-and-forth game, sending the series back to Houston.

Milt Wilcox, 1970 Reds (6 appearances: 5 regular season, 1 postseason)

A second-round draft pick out of an Oklahoma City high school in 1968, Wilcox reached the majors just over two years later, debuting on September 5, 1970 with a five-inning start against the Padres, throwing a five-hit shutout against the Dodgers four days later, and making three relief appearances. In Game 3 of the NLCS against the Pirates, he notched a win in relief while throwing three shutout innings in Game 3 of the NLCS as the Reds completed a sweep; among his five strikeout victims were future Hall of Famers Roberto Clemente and Willie Stargell.

Wilcox took the loss in Game 2 of the World Series against the Orioles, unable to stem the tide in a five-run fifth inning; Boog Powell, Brooks Robinson, and Elrod Hendricks each drove in runs against him. He threw 1.2 scoreless innings in Game 5, and was credited with an assist when Frank Robinson hit a comebacker off his hip that third baseman Tony Perez recovered in time to throw to first for the out, but the Orioles wrapped up the series nonetheless. Wilcox went on to pitch 16 seasons in the majors, most notably as a member of the 1984 Tigers’ rotation, notching wins in Games 3 of both the ALCS (the clincher) and World Series.

Marty Bystrom, 1980 Phillies (7 appearances: 6 regular season, 1 postseason)

An undrafted free agent signing by the Phillies in 1976, Bystrom debuted for the team on September 7, 1980, and began his major league career with 20 consecutive scoreless innings, including a five-hit shutout of the Mets on September 10 in his first start. The 22-year-old righty made four more regular season turns, posting a 1.50 ERA en route to NL Pitcher of the Month honors. He started the fifth and deciding game of the NLCS against the Astros, allowing just two runs (one earned) in 5.1 innings opposite Nolan Ryan, whom the Phillies roughed up for six runs in seven innings; the Phillies won in 10, giving them their first pennant in 30 years.

With the World Series against the Royals tied at two games apiece, Bystrom started Game 5, and while he was battered for 10 hits in five innings, he allowed just three runs; the Phillies pulled out the game with two ninth inning runs, and won Game 6 as well to bring the franchise its first championship. While Bystrom helped the team get back to the World Series in 1983, arm troubles derailed his career; he last pitched in the majors in 1985.

David Price, 2008 Rays (8 appearances: 5 regular season, 3 postseason)

The first pick of the 2007 draft out of Vanderbilt, Price made a late-season cameo for the Rays, debuting with a 5.1-inning appearance in relief of Edwin Jackson on September 14 and making four more appearances, including one start. The Rays included the 23-year-old lefty on their postseason roster, but he did’t pitch until the ALCS against the Red Sox, where he made three scoreless appearances totaling 2.1 innings, notching a win in Game 2 and the pennant-clinching save in Game 7.

Price made two more appearances against the Phillies in the World Series, throwing 2.1 innings while allowing one run in Tampa Bay’s Game 2 win, and tossing a scoreless eighth inning in Game 5 (the suspended game that was resumed two days later), keeping the Rays’ deficit at one run, though they couldn’t add the equalizer.

So far, Price has gone on to the best career of any of these newcomers, making five All-Star teams, winning a Cy Young award, and helping the Red Sox win the 2018 World Series. He pitched for the Dodgers this year, but did not make a postseason appearance.

Steven Matz, 2015 Mets (8 appearances: 6 regular season, 2 postseason)

A second-round 2009 draft pick from Long Island, Matz debuted for the Mets on June 28, 2015 with 7.2 innings of two-run ball against the Reds, but made just one more start before an oblique strain sidelined him for nearly six weeks. He returned to the majors with a solid four-start performance in September, then made wobbly starts in both the Division Series against the Dodgers and LCS against the Cubs, totaling 9.2 innings and four runs allowed.

Matz started Game 4 of the World Series against the Royals, allowing one run in the first five innings, though he was charged with a second after being pulled following a Ben Zobrist double and a Lorenzo Cain single to start the sixth. Alas, the Royals came back to win via an eighth-inning rally, and took the series in five games. Due to injuries, Matz has since had his ups and downs, but after being traded to the Blue Jays in January, he set a career high in WAR (2.8) in 2021.

Franklin Morales, 2007 Rockies (10 appearances: 8 regular season, 2 postseason)

The Venezuela-born Morales was just 21 years and 206 days old when he debuted for the Rockies on August 18, 2007. He had a strong eight-start showing for the team (3.43 ERA, 3.80 FIP) and allowed just three runs and 11 hits over his final four starts, with the final one capping their 11-game late-September winning streak. He scuffled in the postseason, failing to get past the fourth inning in his NLDS start against Philadelphia and his NLCS start against Arizona, though the Rockies won both games and both series. In the World Series opener, he retired just two of the nine hitters he faced as the Red Sox lit him up for seven fifth-inning runs en route to a 13-1 route. He threw 2.1 scoreless innings in relief in Game 3, but only after starter Josh Fogg had been lit for six third-inning runs.

Morales lasted 10 years in the majors, later pitching for the World Series-winning 2013 Red Sox (though he only appeared in the Division and Championship Series) and the ’15 Royals, for whom he allowed four runs while retiring just one hitter, leaving him with a lifetime World Series ERA of 29.70.

Brandon Finnegan, 2014 Royals (12 appearances: 7 regular season, 5 postseason)

On September 6, 2014, a day short of three months after being chosen with the 17th pick of the 2014 draft, Finnegan debuted with the Royals. He was stellar down the stretch, striking out 10 while walking just one and allowing one run in seven innings. The Royals included the lefty on their postseason roster, and were glad they did; in the epic Wild Card game against the A’s, he threw scoreless innings in the 10th and 11th, but was charged with a run in the 12th after his leadoff walk of Josh Reddick turned into a run; the Royals won nonetheless.

Finnegan made two scoreless appearances in the Division Series against the Angels, two appearances in the ALCS against the Orioles, and two more in the World Series against the Giants, albeit with diminishing returns. Entering a 4-4 tie in Game 4 of the World Series, he was peppered for four hits and five runs, and took the loss. Traded to the Reds in the Johnny Cueto blockbuster the next year, he’s still in Cincinnati’s organization, but hasn’t pitched in the majors since 2018 due to injuries.

Francisco Rodríguez, 2002 Angels (16 appearances: 5 regular season, 11 postseason)

The most immediately impactful of the newcomers on this list, the Venezuela-born Rodriguez debuted on September 18, 2002 at 20 years and 254 days old. He made five relief appearances, then was added to the postseason roster using a now-familiar loophole whereby any player in a postseason-bound team’s organization can replace another postseason-eligible player on the roster in the event of an injury. Quickly earning the nickname K-Rod, he became an essential part of manager Mike Scioscia’s bullpen, making seven appearances in the first two rounds, allowing two runs in 10 innings while striking out 15, and picking up four wins in relief along the way.

Rodriguez added another win via three perfect innings of middle relief in Game 2 of the World Series against the Giants. He took the loss via an unearned run allowed in Game 4, and was scored on twice in 2.2 innings in Game 6, but returned to pitch a scoreless eighth in Game 7 while protecting a 4-1 lead; though he issued a two-out walk to Barry Bonds, he struck out Rich Aurilia, Jeff Kent, and Benito Santiago, and three outs later, the Angels were champions. Rodriguez went on to pitch 15 more seasons in the majors, making six All-Star teams and notching 437 saves, the fourth-highest total of all-time.